DATE=4/27/99
TYPE=BACKGROUND REPORT
NUMBER=5-43237
TITLE=NIGERIA / MILITARY
BYLINE=WILLIAM EAGLE
DATELINE=WASHINGTON
EDITOR=
CONTENT=
NOT VOICED:
INTRO: IN LATE MAY, NIGERIA WILL SWEAR IN AN ELECTED CIVILIAN
PRESIDENT. PRO-DEMOCRACY FORCES HOPE THE INAUGURATION WILL MARK
THE BEGINNING OF A NEW DEMOCRATIC ERA AND PUT A PERMANENT END TO
OVER 35 YEARS OF MILITARY RULE. THE DEBATE NOW IS ON ABOUT HOW
TO ENSURE CIVILIAN CONTROL OVER THE ARMED FORCES -- WHICH MANY
SAY NEED TO BE REFORMED. FROM WASHINGTON, REPORTER WILLIAM EAGLE
SPOKE TO SEVERAL NIGERIANS WHO HAVE THEIR OWN IDEAS ON THE
SUBJECT.
TEXT: BIGGER IS NOT NECESSARILY BETTER. AT LEAST THAT'S THE
OPINION OF SOME WHO WANT TO SEE NIGERIA'S ARMY BECOME LEANER,
MORE EFFICIENT -- AND LESS PRONE TO COUPS.
JIDI OWOEYE [PRON. JEE'-DEH OH-WAY'-YEH] IS A LECTURER IN
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AT OBAFEMI AWOLOWO UNIVERSITY IN ILE-IFE,
NIGERIA. HE PROPOSES BREAKING UP NIGERIA'S CURRENT ARMY -- WHICH
IS CENTRALIZED AND HIERARCHICAL -- INTO SMALLER REGIONAL
MILITARIES. MR.OWOEYE SAYS REORGANIZATION WOULD BE FAIRLY EASY.
// OWOEYE ACT //
[I AM] SUGGESTING THAT THE ARMY ALREADY HAS [FOUR]
DIVISIONS IN VARIOUS PARTS OF THE COUNTRY -- THEY ARE
SUCH THAT THEY DO NOT FOLLOW EITHER ETHNIC LINES OR
THE RECOGNIZED FIVE GEOPOLITICAL DIVIDES.
(OPT) IF THE [ARMY] DIVISIONS BECOME UPGRADED WITH
SEPARATE COLORS, FLAGS AND TRADITIONS, WE'LL BEGIN TO
HAVE THE KIND OF MILITARY YOU HAVE IN THE UNITED
KINGDOM -- WHICH IS THE MODE FOR [MULTILATERAL
POLITICAL ORGANIZATIONS LIKE] THE COMMONWEALTH. (END
ACT)
// END ACT //
MR OWOEYE WOULD MODEL NIGERIA'S MILITARY IN PART ON EGYPT'S:
WITH EACH OF NIGERIA'S CURRENT ARMY DIVISIONS BECOMING RELATIVELY
AUTONOMOUS AND SELF-SUFFICIENT. HE SAYS THE NEW REGIONALIZED
ARMIES WOULD HAVE SEPARATE TRAINING, COMBAT AND SERVICE UNITS.
AND THEY WOULD PROMOTE ETHNIC DIVERSITY -- BY ALLOWING RECRUITS
TO VOLUNTEER FOR WHICHEVER DIVISION THEY PREFER. MR. OWOEYE SAYS
THE NEW ARRANGEMENT WOULD BE ENHANCED BY APPOINTING MILITARY
LEADERS WHO ARE KNOWN BY THE COMMUNITIES IN WHICH THEY'RE
STATIONED.
// OWOEYE ACT //
THE BEST WAY IS FOR THE HEAD OF THE DIVISION OR THE ARMY
TO BE NATIVE OF A PARTICULAR AREA. YOU ARE TALKING
ABOUT AN AREA THAT [MAY] COVER ... [UP TO 25 ETHNIC
GROUPS]. SO IT IS NOT POSSIBLE FOR THE [ARMY LEADER] TO
BE IDENTIFIED WITH [ANY ONE] PARTICULAR ETHNIC GROUP,
BUT CAN BE SEEN AS SOMEONE FROM AROUND THAT AREA. [THE
LEADERS WOULD] UNDERSTAND THE [LOCAL] LANGUAGE, AND IT
WILL BE EASY FOR PEOPLE TO SAY, "THIS FELLOW WILL LISTEN
TO US."
// END ACT //
ACCORDING TO MR. OWOEYE, NIGERIA'S CIVILIAN PRESIDENT WOULD BE
THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF NIGERIA'S MILITARY -- AND WOULD APPOINT
THE SERVING CHIEFS OF ARMY STAFF AND THE COMMANDERS.
MR. OWOEYES PROPOSALS WERE RECENTLY PUBLISHED IN THE LAGOS-BASED
DAILY, THE GUARDIAN. REACTION TO THEM VARIES.
/// OPT /// JIMI ADISA IS A LECTURER IN THE DEPARTMENT OF
POLITICAL SCIENCE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF IBADAN.
// OPT: ADISA ACT //
THOSE CALLING FOR A REGIONAL ARMY HAVE NOT CONVINCED
US. WHAT HAPPENS TO THE COMMAND STRUCTURE OF THE ARMED
FORCES? WOULD THE REGIONAL COMMAND STRUCTURES BE
AUTONOMOUS? IF THE REGIONAL ARMIES GIVE WAY TO
REGIONAL WARLORDS HAVING TIES WITH REGIONAL CENTERS, IT
MAY BE THE BEGINNING OF THE END OF THE [NIGERIAN]
FEDERATION.
// END ACT // // END OPT //
NIGERIA ANALYST KAYODE FAYEMI SAYS THE STRESS SHOULD NOT BE ON
REGIONALIZING THE ARMY. HE SAYS THE NEW CIVILIAN GOVERNMENT
SHOULD STUDY THE NEEDS OF A MODERN AND DEMOCRATIC NIGERIA.
ACCORDING TO MR. FAYEMI, WHO DIRECTS THE LONDON-BASED CENTER FOR
DEMOCRACY AND DEVELOPMENT, NIGERIA DOES NOT NEED A BIG ARMY.
// FAYEMI ACT //
I WOULD CALL FOR A RE-ASSESSMENT OF THE NATURE OF THE
THREATS [TO] THE NIGERIAN STATE. YOU ARE [LIKELY] TO
CONCLUDE THE [THEY] ARE PRIMARILY INTERNAL.
PRIMARILY NIGERIA HAS VERY FEW THREATS, AND THE
[POSSIBILITY] OF A FRENCH OR SOUTH AFRICAN THREAT
USED TO JUSTIFY A BIG ARMY AND HUGE COSTLY WEAPONS NO
LONGER STANDS.
// END ACT //
INSTEAD, MR. FAYEMI WOULD STRENGTHEN LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES,
THE POLICE, BORDER GUARDS, AND IMMIGRATION SERVICES. HE WOULD
ALSO BUILD UP SOME PARTS OF THE NIGERIAN MILITARY THAT HAVE UNTIL
NOW BEEN LARGELY IGNORED.
// (OPT) FAYEMI ACT //
PERHAPS, YOU CAN TALK ABOUT STRENGTHENING THE NAVY
BECAUSE [ANY] ECONOMIC THREAT [LIKELY] CENTERS ON
OFF-SHORE [OIL-RELATED] RESOURCES ... THE ONLY PEOPLE
TRAINED FOR THAT ARE NAVAL SERVICES. THEY CAN ACQUIRE
MORE PATROL BOATS, THEY CAN GET INVOLVED IN AMPHIBIOUS
OPERATIONS. BUT PRIMARILY, WE DO NOT NEED MORE THAN A
TWO DIVISION ARMY OF ABOUT 40 THOUSAND SOLDIERS FOCUSING
ON INTERNATIONAL PEACE KEEPING ACTIVITIES -- AND ONLY
RARELY USED IN VERY, VERY CLEARLY AND SPECIFIC
CIRCUMSTANCES IN INTERNAL CRISES.
// END ACT /// /// END OPT //
SOME OBSERVERS THINK THE NEWS MEDIA -- AND SOME CIVILIAN
POLITICIANS -- ARE EXAGGERATING THE PROBLEMS OF NIGERIA'S
MILITARY.
SUNDAY OCHECHE [PRON. OH-CHEH'-CHAY] OF THE NATIONAL WAR COLLEGE
IN ABUJA, NIGERIA, SAYS NIGERIA'S MILITARY DOES NOT NEED TO BE
REDUCED IN SIZE. HE ALSO DOES NOT THINK NIGERIA'S ARMY SHOULD
BECOME PRIMARILY DEVOTED TO INTERNATIONAL PEACE-KEEPING.
HE ALSO THINKS CRITICS ARE BEING TOO HARD ON THE MILITARY. MR.
OCHECHE SAYS CRITICS SEEM TO IGNORE THE FACT THAT SENIOR MILITARY
OFFICERS -- INCLUDING GENERAL OFFICERS OF COMMAND, OR G-O-C'S --
HAVE NEVER CONDONED THE OVERTHROW OF ANY GOVERNMENT.
// OCHECHE ACT //
THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A TIME WHEN THERE WAS A [SO-CALLED]
"PLANNING ROOM" WITH ORDERS [TO OVERTHROW A GOVERNMENT]
ISSUED BY THE MILITARY HIERARCHY LIKE IN A NORMAL
MILITARY OPERATION. RATHER, EACH TIME, THE MILITARY
HIERARCHY IS VIOLATED [BY THE COUP MAKERS] -- SENIOR
OFFICERS ARE LOCKED UP BY JUNIOR OFFICERS... THE G-O-C'S
AND SERVICE CHIEFS ARE NEVER IN THE PICTURE.
/// OPT /// EVERY MILITARY OFFICER HAS TAKEN AN OATH TO
BE LOYAL TO THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF -- BY THE TIME A
CIVILIAN INVITES YOU TO [OVERTHROW] YOUR
COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, YOU SHOULD KNOW PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
DEMANDS THAT PERSON BE ARRESTED AND THE CASE REPORTED.
TREASON HAS NEVER BEEN AN ACCEPTABLE WAY FOR ANY SOLDIER
TO SOLVE ANY PROBLEM. // END OPT ///
// END ACT //
MR. OCHCHE FAVORS WHAT HE CALLS MILITARY "RE-ORIENTATION" OVER
"RE-ORGANIZATION." HE SAYS ALL MEMBERS OF THE MILITARY SHOULD BE
REMINDED OF THE RIGHT TO DISOBEY ILLEGAL ORDERS THAT WOULD
OVERTHROW AN ELECTED GOVERNMENT.
HE SAYS ANY OTHER MILITARY REFORMS IS A MATTER BEST LEFT TO THE
MILITARY ITSELF -- WITH SUPPORT, BUT NOT INTERFERENCE -- FROM
CIVILIANS. (SIGNED)
NEB/WE/KL
27-Apr-99 2:06 PM EDT (1806 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
|
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list
|
|
|
